Latest Updates - VETbytes

Latest updates feed for emergency and critical care (ECC)

We have trawled through the latest veterinary journals and created condensed summaries of the most recently published papers relevant to ECC

Keep up to date with the latest evidence without having to spend hours reading and use these as templates for your journal clubs as part of quality improvement (QI) in your practice

22nd March 2021

Study found there was no evidence for, or against the use of decompressive cystocentesis in the management of cats with urethral obstruction ...read more

8th March 2021

Vet BLUE, when performed by vets with basic training has a good overall specificity but poor sensitivity for the detection of alveolar-interstitial syndrome (AIS) when compared to CT ...read more

1st March 2021

A novel method of laparotomy-assisted transoral retrieval of gastrointestinal foreign bodies is described and may provide an alternative to gastrotomy in carefully selected cases ...read more

28th February 2021

Latest randomised controlled trial concludes that although pimobendan appears safe in cats with HCM, no benefit on 180-day outcome was identified ...read more

22nd February 2021

Recent study reported the prevalence of phenobarbitone associated adverse effects in epileptic cats to be 47% with sedation and ataxia being the most common ...read more

17th February 2021

The utility of abdominal ultrasound for the detection of grossly identifiable lesions in dogs with non-traumatic haemoperitoneum appears limited ...read more

16th February 2021

A study in healthy adult chihuahuas show that breed specific references for radiographic vertebral heart score (VHS) and vertebral left atrial size (VALS) are needed ...read more

15th February 2021

Haemoperitoneum can be seen with anaphylactic reactions in dogs. These dogs have the potential to be successfully treated medically without the need for surgical exploration ...read more

14th February 2021

The finding of a peripheral hypoechoic band associated with central emphysema in a non-collapsed lung on ultrasound is strongly suggestive of lung lobe torsion ...read more

14th February 2021

Double layer suture closure of canine partial gastrectomy was shown to achieve superior biomechanical properties compared to a stapled closure technique in a cadaver model. Reinforcement of single staple closures with an inverting Cushings suture pattern is recommended to improve resistance to leakage ...read more

13th February 2021

A study showed that the frequency of AFAST fluid positive sites was much higher than expected in healthy adult dogs. This may have implications for the interpretation of these scores in the clinical setting ...read more

11th February 2021

Bromethalin ingestion does not commonly lead to clinical signs in patients that are presented to an emergency hospital within 2 hours of ingestion ...read more

10th February 2021

Pericardial catheters appear to offer a safe alternative to needle pericardiocentesis and their use was not associated with a higher rate of arrhythmias compared to needle pericardiocentesis alone ...read more

9th February 2021

Fluid resuscitation with hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 or a three-fold greater volume of isotonic crystalloid solution resulted in significant changes in both standard coagulation parameters and ROTEM assays in dogs presenting with spontaneous haemoperitoneum and the ROTEM effects were more pronounced after HES ...read more

9th February 2021

The instillation of topical NSAIDs to the eyes of healthy cats did not induce any changes in corneal sensitivity and therefore did not induce corneal hypoesthesia. It is not yet known if the same is true for cats with diseased corneas ...read more

6th February 2021

Results of a large retrospective study into Vitis vinifera fruit ingestion in dogs suggest that emesis should be induced even if > 4 hours have passed since ingestion and even if >12 hrs have passed if the patient is showing clinical signs ...read more

4th February 2021

Commonly used rapid infusion techniques in small animal transfusion medicine do NOT cause significant iatrogenic haemolysis of canine packed red blood cells in vitro ...read more

1st February 2021

Patients receiving lower concentrations of regular insulin used in continuous rate infusions, especially cats and small dogs, may require more time for resolution of hyperglycaemia and ketonaemia ...read more

28th January 2021

Lung ultrasound could be considered a practical alternative to repeated thoracic radiography for the monitoring of left sided congestive heart failure in dogs ...read more

26th January 2021

Neutrophil counts should be monitored in dogs receiving vincristine treatment for immune-mediated thrombocytopenia (ITP), especially if administered with cyclosporine ...read more

24th January 2021

Compared to laboratory methods, point-of-care crossmatch tests are shown to lack sensitivity for detecting incompatibilities in critically ill dogs giving rise to the possibility of false negative results ...read more

22nd January 2021

In cases of canine thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion, recurrence of signs is more likely if at least 1 completely degenerate disc in addition to the symptomatic disc is visible on MRI suggesting the need for greater consideration of prophylactic fenestration ...read more

20th January 2021

Midazolam CRI appears safe and may be an effective treatment in dogs with cluster seizures (CS) or status epilepticus (SE) ...read more

18th January 2021

Aspiration pneumonia should be suspected in cats with a concurrent history of gastrointestinal disease presenting with tachypnoea of short duration ...read more

12th January 2021

In cats with benign ureteral obstruction, the placement of a subcutaneous ureteral bypass is associated with a high rate of complications but a median survival time of > 2 years suggesting that most of the complications are manageable ...read more

11th January 2021

A staged technique of immediate decompressive and delayed surgical treatment of dogs with GDV reported a similar mortality rate (9%) to those from dogs undergoing immediate surgery but cannot be widely recommended but until definitive preoperative markers of gastric necrosis have been identified ...read more

7th January 2021

Systematic review into the conservative and surgical management of pericardial effusions in dogs concludes that there is not yet sufficient good quality evidence to recommend one treatment option rather than another ...read more

4th January 2021

Earlier surgical treatment of stabilised dogs with gastrointestinal foreign body obstruction may reduce the requirement for complex procedures and may accelerate recovery ...read more

2nd January 2021

Feeding does not significantly affect the pharmacokinetics of acetaminophen (paracetamol) in dogs and can therefore be easily administered by the owner regardless of food consumption ...read more

30th December 2020

Computed tomography in two recumbencies aids the identification of pulmonary bullae in dogs with spontaneous pneumothorax ...read more

21st December 2020

Blood samples analysed for lactate after a delay of greater than 7.5 minutes at room temperature in dogs should be interpreted with caution ...read more

19th December 2020

When compared with other causes of intrinsic acute kidney injury (iAKI) canine leptospirosis was shown to be characterised by increased glucosuria and higher fractional excretion of potassium ...read more

18th December 2020

Knowledge of positive allergen specific IgE results could guide allergen avoidance in asthmatic cats ...read more

16th December 2020

Finding a cerebrospinal fluid lactate concentration above the current reference interval (>2.5 mmol/l) in dogs with seizures, may be a useful, rapid way to identify dogs at risk for structural epilepsy ...read more

15th December 2020

Study provides useful benchmarking information for practitioners on the causes, diagnostic evaluation and management of seizures in UK practices ...read more

13th December 2020

Lower saline‐to‐blood ratio results should not be used for a diagnosis of IMHA in dogs because false‐positive results are common ...read more

9th December 2020

The administration of pimobendan to cats with cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure did not demonstrate a survival benefit but appears well tolerated, regardless of the presence of outflow tract obstruction ...read more

8th December 2020

Shock Index is associated with mortality in canine vehicular trauma patients and can help clinicians identify critical patients that require more intensive monitoring and intervention ...read more

1st December 2020

The rectal-interdigital temperature gradient (RITG) may serve as a diagnostic marker of circulatory shock in dogs ...read more

26th November 2020

Administration of gabapentin to cats appears to produce a similar effect on food intake to mirtazapine demonstrating this drugs potential to be used as an appetite stimulant in this species ...read more

21st November 2020

Lung ultrasound has a high sensitivity for diagnosis of pulmonary contusions when compared to “gold standard” thoracic CT in dogs with vehicle trauma ...read more

12th November 2020

Short-term outcome of dogs with acute on chronic kidney disease (ACKD) is comparable to those with acute kidney injury (AKI) but long-term prognosis is guarded. The IRIS AKI grade at presentation is a prognostic indicator of short-term outcome ...read more

11th November 2020

In dogs undergoing splenectomy, a liver biopsy taken from grossly normal liver is a low-yield diagnostic test but liver biopsy is recommended following splenectomy if the liver appears abnormal at surgery ...read more

7th November 2020

Large study provides estimates for the prevalence of idiopathic epilepsy and structural epilepsy in dogs undergoing MRI for the investigation of epileptic seizures ...read more

4th November 2020

Intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) and aortic thromboembolism (ATE) are the most common causes of acute paralysis in dogs and cats presenting to an emergency clinic ...read more

1st November 2020

Noise levels in a veterinary referral ICU were found to be above the WHO recommended levels ...read more

30th October 2020

Vertebral left atrial size (VLAS) is a repeatable radiographic measurement for quantifying left atrial size and does not appear to be affected by bodyweight, age or sex ...read more

22nd October 2020

In dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion, an intravenous injection of morphine does not affect the modified Frankel score after 30 min compared with the pre-injection value ...read more

19th October 2020

A new protocol based on the i/m administration of insulin lispro was shown to be effective and safe for the treatment of DKA in dogs but further studies are required to validate the treatment protocol ...read more

19th October 2020

In dogs with Status epilepticus (SE) or cluster seizures presented to a teaching hospital, first seizure outside the defined idiopathic interval of 6mths to 6 years, absence of previous antiepileptic drug therapy in a dog with a history of seizures and hyperthermia at presentation were associated with a poor outcome ...read more

12th October 2020

Doberman Pinschers with overt dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and atrial fibrillation (AF) have shorter survival times and higher risk of cardiac-related death than those without AF ...read more

12th October 2020

Dry-needle acupuncture performed prior to surgery helps to decrease perioperative analgesic use and to may improve the quality of perioperative analgesia in dogs undergoing thoracolumbar hemilaminectomy for intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE) ...read more

5th October 2020

Transpalpebral ultrasonographic measurement of the optic nerve sheath diameter is a non-invasive, low cost method that may serve as an additional tool to help identify cats with intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) where invasive measurement of intracranial pressure (ICP) is contraindicated or unavailable ...read more

5th October 2020

90 % of cats with sacrocaudal luxation regained the ability to urinate voluntarily and 87% of cats that regained urinary function did so within the first 30 days. Regaining voluntary urination was significantly associated with neurological grade and the ability to control defaecation ...read more

28th September 2020

An aortic oesophageal fistula (AEF) should be considered in any patient with severe bleeding following oesophagoscopy. A history of haematemesis in a dog with an oesophageal foreign body should raise suspicion of the presence of an AEF and dictate case management accordingly ...read more

21st September 2020

Pneumocolonography (infusion of air into the rectum) is a simple, rapid, low morbidity test that can be done in cases of suspected colonic torsion in dogs. Many cases will show an abrupt tapering of the large bowel but it may be of minimal diagnostic value in mild cases ...read more

21st September 2020

Non diabetic dogs evaluated in the emergency room (ER) with shock or hyperlactataemia had higher blood glucose (BG) values than those with normal perfusion and plasma lactate concentrations suggesting the existence of physiologic stress hyperglycaemia in this species ...read more

14th September 2020

16% of cats administered fresh frozen plasma (FFP) experienced a possible adverse transfusion reaction (ATR) which was mild and had no significant impact on survival. The most common ATR was increased body temperature, followed by dyspnoea/tachypnoea ...read more

14th September 2020

Hyperimmune plasma (HIP) at 10 mL/kg i/v administered to dogs with canine parvovirus (CPV) within the first 6 hours of hospitalisation improves markers for shock during the initial 24 hours of hospitalisation but no effects were observed on duration of hospitalisation or mortality ...read more

7th September 2020

Torasemide was shown to be effective and safe to use in cats with congestive heart failure (CGF) as a first-line and second-line loop diuretic treatment ...read more

1st September 2020

Chocolate and Lilium plants are the most commonly reported potentially poisonous exposures of dogs and cats respectively. Fluorouracil (chemotherapy medication) and bifenthrin (insecticide) were found to have the highest case fatality ratio for dogs and cats, respectively ...read more

1st September 2020

Torasemide is shown to be noninferior to furosemide as first line oral (PO) treatment for new onset congestive heart failure (CHF) caused by degenerative mitral valve disease (DMVD) in dogs. It also has the advantage of increased owner compliance (due to once daily dosing) and less than half the risk of cardiac death, euthanasia or worsening CHF compared to furosemide ...read more

31st August 2020

Hypotensive dogs and cats with severe azotaemia have lower plasma lactate concentrations compared to hypotensive non-azotaemic dogs and cats which may have implications when using lactate as a guide for resuscitation and vasopressor therapy ...read more

30th August 2020

Report of a serious adverse event of gastrointestinal obstruction in a dog that necessitated enterotomy following routine multidose charcoal granule administration ...read more

27th August 2020

A new technique of endoscopic placement of a 2 step oesophageal/jejunal (OJ) feeding tube is described and can be recommended as a method for early nutritional support in dogs with severe uraemia ...read more

22nd August 2020

Dramatic neurological deterioration following decompressive surgery for intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH) in dogs may be associated with the development of poliomyelomalacia secondary to ischemia ...read more

22nd August 2020

Report of successful management of super-refractory status epilepticus in three dogs with a ketamine-dexmedetomidine infusion combined with mild induced hypothermia ...read more

21st August 2020

Clinically relevant dose of hypertonic saline (7.5% NaCl) at 5 ml/kg does not affect whole blood coagulation significantly in healthy beagles ...read more

20th August 2020

Maropitant is effective at inhibiting tranexamic acid evoked emesis in dogs, but nausea may persist ...read more

20th August 2020

FOCUS evaluation of basic cardiac structure and LA:Ao by trained emergency clinicians improved accuracy of diagnosis compared to physical examination in cats with respiratory distress ...read more

19th August 2020

High-flow nasal cannula (HFNC ) oxygen therapy may have a role as a non-invasive respiratory support modality that can bridge the gap between traditional oxygen supplementation and invasive mechanical ventilation ...read more

11th August 2020

Application of high flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen therapy during recovery from anaesthesia, in dogs with obstructive upper airway breathing, may result in improved airflow during times of somnolent obstructive breathing ...read more

8th August 2020

First report to describe the successful use of amiodarone in a cat experiencing persistent ventricular tachycardia, having been resuscitated from cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA) secondary to ventricular fibrillation ...read more

30th July 2020

Routine bacterial culturing of acute wounds is unlikely to help predict subsequent wound infection, nor is it likely to accurately guide early selection of antimicrobials to treat wounds that become infected ...read more

28th July 2020

Administration of pregabalin as an adjunctive treatment to opioids results in reduction of post-operative pain behaviour in dogs that have been surgically treated for intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH) ...read more

27th July 2020

Azotaemia and the presence of local or secondary complications were significantly associated with death in dogs with acute pancreatitis ...read more

26th July 2020

A positive Spec fPL result indicates that pancreatitis is a probable diagnosis in cats, but the test cannot be used to rule the diagnosis out ...read more

25th July 2020

Approximately 15% of spinal cord injury dogs may develop chronic neuropathic pain which may go unrecognised by the owner ...read more

25th July 2020

Myocardial cell injury, reflected by increased cTnI concentrations and Ventricular arrhythmias are common after European adder (V berus) envenomation in dogs. Prolonged electrocardiography monitoring is advised, particularly where cTnI is increased but arrhythmias appear to be well tolerated in this population of dogs with 92% resolving without anti-arrhythmic therapy ...read more

25th July 2020

Long‐term survival for dogs with surgically managed spontaneous pneumothorax is good and associated with a low risk of recurrence ...read more

22nd July 2020

No single clinical sign, radiographic finding or laboratory diagnostic test can be used to distinguish between feline asthma and chronic bronchitis ...read more

22nd July 2020

Subcutaneous Ureteral Bypass (SUB) placement is shown to be an effective short-term treatment option for benign ureteral obstructions in dogs ...read more

20th July 2020

Post operative complications are common in dogs undergoing surgery for intussusception, including a 14% risk of life threatening short term complications ...read more

20th July 2020

In dogs with immune mediated thrombocytopenia (IMT), Therapeutic Plasma Exchange (TPE) was shown to be safe and was associated with improved platelet counts and clinical manifestations of bleeding in 3 out of 4 dogs with severe or refractory disease ...read more

18th July 2020

An overnight delay before spinal decompression increases the risk of clinically meaningful deterioration in dogs presenting with grade 3 or 4 thoracolumbar disc extrusion ...read more

15th July 2020

Markedly prolonged anaesthesia might negatively affect recovery in severely affected dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH) ...read more

12th July 2020

Acute on chronic kidney disease (ACKD) in cats has a short term outcome comparable to acute kidney injury (AKI) however long term prognosis is guarded (MST 66 days. The presence of weight loss may help differentiate ACKD from AKI ...read more

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